Improvement of Mechanical Properties of Aluminium 6061 based Metal Matrix Composite with Addition of Granite Particulate

Abstract

Aluminium is considered as one of the material of future. Aluminium based metal matrix comes with a fascinating set of material properties which combines strength with less weight. Due to this these Al-base metal matrix finds their application in aerospace and automotive sector. Many types of reinforcements are done with Aluminium since last many years to check the improvement in its performance. Therefore many reinforcements are found suitable to form the composite which finds variety of novel applications. In this present investigation MMCs are fabricated with Al 6061 alloy and reinforced with granite particulate of 2-3 microns size in different compositions are used to see their effect on the mechanical properties of Al6061 alloy. The vortex method of stir casting is used to from the metal matrix wherein reinforcements are forced into the vortex created by the molten metal by means of mechanical stirrer. The castings prepared by above method are machined with turning operation on lathe. Improvement in Ultimate tensile strength, Yield strength, % Elongation and Hardness are found with increasing the percentage of granite particulates..